Police: Gunman robbed Columbia Sportswear leader
PORTLAND, OR
She was roughed up when the robber tied her hands Wednesday
afternoon, police said, but wasn't seriously injured.
Boyle, who holds the title chairman, did take an unusual day off
from work Thursday, a company spokesman said.
She burnished her hard-nosed reputation after her husband died
of a heart attack and she took over Columbia, based in Oregon, in
1970. In the 1980s, a national ad campaign showed her putting her
son, Tim, and the products through extreme tests and her flexing
her biceps tattooed with the words "Born to Nag."
On Wednesday, police said, Boyle pulled into the driveway of her
home in West Linn and the robber approached her posing as a
delivery man. But when she got suspicious, he pulled a gun and
ordered her inside the house.
Boyle told the robber she had to disable the alarm but instead
tripped a silent panic button that summoned officers.
When one arrived, he saw that Boyle's hands were bound and
someone appeared to be inside the house. But the robber escaped
through a back door and into a ravine.
Six hours later at about 11:20 p.m., said Sgt. Neil Hennelly, an
officer saw a man limping outside a McDonald's where he had
apparently been trying to clean himself. His face was scratched,
and he told the officer he had been working on the trees, Hennelly
said.
The man identified himself as 39-year-old Nestor G. Caballero
and police booked him on charges of burglary, robbery and
kidnapping. They found jewelry that appeared to be from Boyle's
house, he said.
Hennelly said the man told them he targeted Boyle, but they
don't have an indication he had committed any similar crimes. Nor
are police certain of his identity, Hennelly said.
"We have no indication this guy has a criminal record, based on
the name he's given us," Hennelly said.
Despite bumps and bruises, Boyle's business instincts came to
the fore when the West Linn police chief visited to brief her on
the investigation.
"He mistakenly wore a North Face jacket, and he asked her how
she was doing," Hennelly said. "She said she was doing fine until
that jacket walked through the door."